Ria's POV
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I don't move.
Watching the vampire who keeps his foot on Zane's lower back. His smug smirk irrating me as my fingers twitch to scratch his eyes out. My skin crawls as his gaze trails over my naked chest and wet jeans, taking in how much I've grown over the pass six years. How much of a woman I've become.
Something glows softly at the edge of my vision, something on the back of my hand. I shake it off, refocusing on the threat before me.
"I must say, you were a beautiful child, but you've become a stunning young woman." He says, his voice dropping and turning husky. His self satisfied smile enough to tell where his thoughts have gone. Down into the gutter. I've seen it more then a few times in the eyes of young wolves. Especially after they saw Theia. Me nor my beasts appreciate it either.
A flash of fire passes my window and I have to stop myself from smiling at the sight of the phoenix I sent to the goddesses. She passes by again and while keeping my gaze trained on Oliver, I reach out with my mind to the creature I created.
"Sister flame, you've returned. Please tell Uncle Zavier that the vampire king is in my bedroom and I'm not going to be held responsible for my actions if he attacks me," She coos softly in my mind allowing me and my beasts refocus on "King" Oliver. I don't intend to kill him though. No, his blood shall not stain my hands but he will die.
Zane groans and shifts, only to have Oliver press his foot more firmly into his spine and I grit my teeth, worried about the possiblity of the vampire breaking his back.
I might be a Chimera but I don't think even I could heal a severed spinal cord. Not even a daughter to the goddesses can perform miracles like that, I think.
"I wouldn't move if I were you boy. Not if you want to be able to walk again." Oliver sneers and my beasts growl, and hiss, a low threatening sound that echoes strangely. Magic heats my blood, the heat building behind my eyes, and my moons that travel the length of my spine, and strangely enough, down my arms, and the back of my hands. Magic heating my chest, up my breast bone, fanning out across my collar bone and shoulders. Zane stills, his eyes fluttering open to widen when his gaze locks on me, he turns his face just slightly, spotting the vampire. His heart rate near on triples in speed before he glances back at me. His instinct to protect warring with the possiblity of being paralyized. I dip my chin slightly, and he stills, a slight smirk pulling at the corner of his lips.
"You are a very foolish man," I can hear my own amusment, the corner of my lips rise up in a smirk, and for once I'm not afraid of my secret being discovered. I relish it, and a predatory thrill shoots through me at the thought of taking this man down. He only knows me as the ten year old too scared of her secret being discovered to protect herself, not the sixteen year old in front of him now unafraid of the world knowing exactly what she is or what she's capable of.
"Am I? I would have thought that you were the foolish one, telling all our worlds leaders what you are. Very silly of you considering their feelings on hybrids," Oliver states, tilting his head slightly, his gaze zeroing in on the scar he gave me. I shrug, claws itching to push through my fingertips.
"I'm nearly there Ria," Uncle Zavier's voice sounds frantic through the mind-link and pain rips through my neck, as fangs are burried deep into the side of my neck and claws rip down my forearm. Oliver sucks hard and the room spins. A loud roar escapes us as memories of the past murge with the present and I throw the man off me, my aura flooding into the room, magic crackling over my skin. Zane's gasp of pain the only thing I register, and attempt to get control of myself so I can ease my aura off of him.
The scent of blood fills my senses and I stare at the crimson stream dripping off my fingers to pool at my feet from the large rips in my arm, healing already slowing the bleeding. Touching the side of my neck with my clean hand, my fingers come back wet and sticky, and a large snarl is ripped out of me from Seren as she pushes forwards, her heat exploding out of our shared body.
"You foolish man," she hisses, gold scales rippling across my skin, only to vanish when the door explodes open and uncle Zavier, barges through, Alpha King Jengo and Alpha King Eros also present, along with Covern Leader Alice, their necks bared to me in submission, their glances ones of shock and awe. Theia pushes forwards just as Seren retreats, a low threatening growl in our throat. I understand why as Xander pushes into the room, his head bowed in submission even if he's unaware of it, I watch as he rushes over to Zane who groans, not sparing me a glance. I sigh internally at being unable to keep the alpha aura I was born with under control, although thankfully it's still focused on the crumpled vampire in the corner. Old, rotten blood mixes with the scent of my own and my nose wrinkles in disgust at seeing the man who'd tormented my sleep in nightmares, bleeding from his mouth and nose. Theia growls again before I force myself to walk over to uncle Zavier so we aren't tempted to end his misable exsistane, and watch as Covern Leader Alice uses her magic to bind his wrists, currents of blue lightening wrapping around his torso. A binding spell, and one of impressive skill even if her magic is weaker than a woman decended from the first witch.
"Alpha King Zavier, if you could ask your Gamma or Delta to show me to your cells I'll put this sorry excuse for a ruler there until you decide on punishment." She waits, while I look up at the man who has protected my secret, respected me, never lusted after the power in my blood. His eyes glaze over with a mind link, turning, I find Xander's eyes are also glazed over before they both come back into the room, Xander's lips in a hard thin line while he shoots a glare at his father before turning his attention back to Zane.
"Take him down to the main hall Covern Leader Alice, I'll let his second in comand choose his fate before I dish out a punishment for harming one of my pack members," he says and I frown up at him, only moving out of the way when Alpha's Jengo and Eros escort him out of the Beta suite with Covern Leader Alice following behind, bowing her head in acknowledgment to the power dancing across my skin. Mom pushes into the room after them and checks on my arm and neck but I brush her away with a glance at Zane. She doesn't move and instead looks from me to my brother, and back to me, pain in her gaze at having to choose between her two children.
Gently, I take hold of her arm and guide her over to Zane just as Xander helps him to sit up. My skin itches, the pins and needles of my skin healing now irratates me, pain radiating through my body and I grit my teeth against it, forcing it away. My beasts shift under my skin, so close to the surface I'm struggling to know where I end and they begin.
"Something doesn't feel right,"Theia states, as she paces. I ignore the creeping dread that settles in my blood and kneel down beside Zane and take his face between my hands, leaving bloody, sticky handprints on his cheeks, blood still leaking from the scratches down my arm, my healing ability seeming to have slowed.
"You ok?" I ask, my voice catching, my body vibrating. I don't care that I'm topless, or that Xander is glancing at me. I need to make sure Zane's ok, then I need to go before I kill everyone in the freaking packhouse. Something isn't right, I need to go, to protect my family from the beast clawing to escape. The insane Chimera I've kept caged and locked away in the deepest recesses of my mind.
"I think so, a little hazy. I think he drugged me." Zane and Kakoa speak as one, their eyes flickering between colours. Tilting his head to the side a fraction I growl at the small bite mark, the fang puncture marks from Vampire teeth in his neck, leaking drops of blood.
"Mom, get the doctor to check on him. That vamp fed from him, he might need blood." I mutter, my vision getting hazy at the edges. Blinking I focus back on my brother, tugging at his top until it's off checking for other injuries before I place my nose right against the wound and let Theia breath deep, scenting for posion, or drugs.
"You were drugged. But I don't know what with." I mutter to him, scenting his wound again, but can't recognise the bitter scent of the drug. I take a step back letting mom fuss over her oldest child while Zane frowns at me, probably able to pick up on the disstress I'm deperately trying to hide.
"We need to go, before we hurt them."Seren rumbles, I get to my feet and stumble back a hand graps my arm, steadying me. The warmth of anothers touch burning, painfully so. I bite back the hiss and look up at the man who stopped me from falling on my ass.
"You alright?" Xander's voice rumbles from beside me and through hazy vision that darkens and brightens randomly, I blink up at him, his voice had sounded distorted.
"Yeah, Z-Zane needs a doctor," I stutter and push his hand off me to stumble out of the beta suite and down the hall to the Omega stairs. My beastspressing against my mind, clawing and ripping to get out, all wanting out at the same time. I'm surprised my glamma has held. Marks glow down my arms and I frown at the moons and star constellation that now run across my skin. Another mark to remind me I'm different, I can't even focus on them as everything blurs. I stumble and half fall down the stairs until fresh air hits my face. Taking a deep breath I try to settle the magic dancing across my skin, making my body glitter in the moonlight.
"What's happening to us?"I gasp out, and take off towards the lake at a run, stumbling over as pain rips through us, tearing through my insides. Hitting the earth with a thud I gasp, a cry escaping as I pull myself back up and keep going. Pushing through the pain to run and get as far away from the packhouse as possible. Fear creeps through my veins, my heart pounding against my ribs at the possiblity that this time I won't be able to stop it and be torn apart by my beasts all pushing to take control of our shared body at once.
Getting to the lake I fall to my knees, claws digging into the earth as I bite down on a strangled roar that claws up my throat, My back arcs with the pain, a low groaning growl filling the air. The light of the moon, so close to being full, seems brighter, the stars so clear in the dark sky. The scent of the lake water, waterlillies, and other water plants fills my senses and I reach out to touch one only to fall sideways. I bite down on my lip, blood coating my tongue as my body fits, limbs jerking stiffly, eyes rolling to the back of my head until it passes.
"Daughter, why do you fight your natura with such determination, It'll only hurt you,"A sigh escapes as I lift my head to face the goddess Artemis, her gaze one of concern and exhasberation at my stubborness. Hakate and Selena step out of a portal that shimmers on the lakes surface behind her, showing a glimps of a realm that was once my home.
"Not here mothers, I will not hurt the family you gifted me to," I grit out, watching Selena as she kneels before me, and runs her fingers through my hair, stroking my cheek gently. The glamma that I've lived with wrapped around me vanishes at her touch as though it was nothing but smoke and mirrors.
"You cannot stay here much longer if your this determined to fight yourself,"She says softly and presses her forehead to mine, her skin cool to my clammy skin.
"How...How much longer before I have to leave?" I whisper, the words choked, my throat tightening. Selena turns to look at Hekate who shakes her head before coming towards me and places her hands on my shoulders. An instant calm settles through me and my beasts who curl up, watching our mothers from behind my eyes.
"I can only give you until the full moon. It's only a few days away sweet child."Hekate shakes her head, her fingers trailing across the new symbols that travel down my arms and across my chest and shoulders. They glow white then settle to look like black tattoo's. Celestial moons, and star constellations travel up my arms from my wrists up, small runes on the back of my hand in the form of a compass. I look down at my chest and a choked laugh escapes at the celestial moons that travel up my breast bone between my breast, the symbol of the sun fans out across my collar bone and shoulders. It seems I'll no longer be able to hide the witch side of me, maybe this is only the beginning of finally being unable to hide the truth.
"What's happening to me?" The question bursts out of me and the three goddesses smile sadly at me.
"You are going through what every shifter goes through at the age of sixteen, only you are fighting your first shift."Artemis states and helps me stand.
"First shift? But I've been able to shift since I was born," I frown at her only for the three goddesses to chuckle at me.
"No silly. Your first shift into what you truly are, a Chimera."Selena states and ice travels down my spine. The moment we've feared for years now only days away. I nod and force a smile.
"Will you be there for it? Stop me from hurting innocent people?" My voice shakes and my body shivers, now the shift has been surpressed a chill has settled across me.
"Of course,"They hug me to them and I let them hold me, taking comfort from their presence. Pain and sorrow touches my heart and I take a deep breath, tears already falling at the mere thought of leaving the only family I've ever known.